31 Reasons We Love the Health Care Law

Today the House of Representatives will vote on the proposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act, the landmark health reform law that the Supreme Court recently determined to be constitutional. Congress has already voted to repeal all or part of this law 30 previous times – but perhaps the House leaders really just want to go out for ice cream and have the number 31 stuck in their heads. Below we offer our 31 favorite flavors of health reform, or at least our 31 favorite reasons to protect the Affordable Care Act.

1. 7 million American women will be eligible for tax credits to help them purchase coverage.
2. Millions of uninsured women will be newly eligible for Medicaid coverage.
3. 6.6 million young adults have already benefited from the provision that enables children to stay on their parent’s insurance until age 26.
4. Insurance companies cannot drop your coverage if you get sick.
5. Insurers will no longer be able to put lifetime and annual caps on your coverage.
6. Insurance companies must spend 80 to 85 percent of premiums on health care, instead of on administrative costs and profits.
7. Insurance companies must now justify their premium increases.
8. Women will be able to access the full range of FDA approved contraception without cost sharing.
9. Cancer screenings such as mammograms and colonoscopies are already available without cost-sharing.
10. Starting in August, women will be able to access a well-woman visit without a co-payment.
11. More than 2 million women with Medicare coverage have saved an average of $604 on prescription drugs as the new law has begun closing the so-called doughnut-hole in Medicare’s prescription drug benefit.
12. Medicare beneficiaries are already receiving preventive services without cost sharing.
13. Insurance plans will now be required to provide maternity coverage.
14. By no later than 2014, plans will not be allowed to charge women more than men for coverage.
15. Insurance companies are no longer allowed to deny children coverage because they have a pre-existing condition.
16. Starting in 2014, insurance companies will no longer be allowed to deny coverage to adults with pre-existing conditions.
17. Small-businesses are already receiving tax credits to help them provide coverage to their employees.
18. Women can now access an OB/GYN without needing a referral from their primary care physician.
19. Employers must provide nursing mothers with a private space and sufficient break time to pump breast milk.
20. Health plans will be required to give consumers an easy to understand summary of the plan’s benefits and coverage.
21. Women will have access to breast feeding supplies and supports without cost-sharing.
22. Discrimination in health care on the basis of sex is now outlawed.
23. Most insurance plans will be required to provide coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatment.
24. New health insurance exchanges will make comparing and purchasing health plans easier.
25.  Almost 62,000 previously uninsured women with pre-existing conditions have gained insurance coverage through new Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans.
26. Insurance companies can no longer refuse to cover your pre-existing health problem, such as heart disease or diabetes.
27. New health plans must cover important preventive services like blood pressure and cholesterol screenings.
28. New health plans will have to cover screening and counseling for domestic violence without cost-sharing.
29. More people on Medicaid will have access to preventive services without cost-sharing.
30. Insurance companies can no longer charge you more for coverage because of your health status.
31. Women will no longer be treated like a pre-existing condition, which means insurance companies will not be able to deny women coverage because they are survivors of domestic violence, have had a C-section, or been diagnosed with breast or cervical cancer.